JOAQUIN HAGEDORN JR: 'WALKING ENCYCLOPEDIA' OF TEAM PACQUIAO
By Alex P. Vidal
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 07 Sep 2008
He is among the regular faces in the Team Pacquiao. But despite his closeness to the Pacquiao family, he does not throw his weight around literally and figuratively; and can be mistaken in the crowd as plain kibitzer or hanger-on hankering for a Manny Pacquiao autograph.
But only few must have noticed that Joaquin "Kino" Hagedorn Jr., boyfriend of Jinkee Pacquiao's twin sister Janet, can talk with absolute accuracy and mastery about boxing, its personalities and history at any given opportunity.
This writer recently bumped into Hagedorn who was at the pre-departure area of the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) when I arrived from Vancouver, Canada via Phoenix, Arizona. Hagedorn, 35, a businessman based in Las Vegas, Nevada, actually first waved at me like a long lost friend when he spotted me wearing a red "Team Pacquiao" shirt designed by World Boxing Council (WBC) ring physician Dr. Allan Lim Recto.
"Can I offer you a cup of coffee or something?" volunteered the matinee idol-looking Hagedorn, who is half American and half Mexican. We then proceeded to the Starbucks coffee inside the airport and ordered Cappuccino and cake.
Hagedorn, whose father Joaquin Sr. used to live in Alabang in Metro Manila, said he had fond memories of the Philippines having stayed in EDSA, Makati for three months in 2001. His last visit in the country was early this year when he went to Davao in the province of his girlfriend.
Hagedorn (right) and Team Pacquiao colleague Winchell Campos.
He described the people in Davao as "so friendly and they have smiles in their faces most of the time."
Hagedorn said he was impressed with life in the province "because the root of the Filipinos is in the province."
"There is something in the Philippines that struck me; I felt like home," he stressed. "One day, I want to settle there."
How did he know Manny Pacquiao, nay Janet? "It was sometime in October 2007 when Eric and Macy Pineda introduced me to Janet during the Pacquiao versus Marco Antonio Barrera II fight in Las Vegas," narrated Hagedorn, who works in the New York-New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. "That was the start of my association with the Pacquiaos."
Eric Pineda is the business manager of Pacquiao while Macy is Eric's wife.
"I just wanted to meet Manny Pacquiao. I'm interested in him (as a boxing fan)," said Hagedorn, who was born in Daly City.
Kino-Janet romance hit off and quickly blossomed. Since then, Hagedorn became a constant companion of the Pacquiao family and stays in the boxer's Palazzo apartment in La Brea, Los Angeles, especially during Pacquiao's mega-buck fights in the United States.
Even before Janet became his girlfriend, Hagedorn admitted that he was already smitten by Pacquiao's ring prowess especially because "Pacquiao cares very much for the environment."
He noticed that when Pacquiao deals with ordinary people and fans, "he doesn't think; it (his kindness) comes out naturally. He doesn't get angry unlike when you are (making a movie) in the Hollywood where you need to act to please everyone."
Meanwhile, he described Jinkee as "a very nice person and one of the kindest women I've ever met."
With his vast knowledge and mastery of facts and information about boxing, Hagedorn can prove to all and sundry that he is not "extra baggage" in the Pacquiao entourage. In fact, he appears to be more knowledgeable about the subject matter compared to other "experts" of Sweet Science in the team.
For instance, Hagedorn could vividly recall some of the super fights involving major names in boxing that made headlines some 30 to 50 years ago without any notes in his possession.
"I consider the fight between Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns as the best championship fight ever," mused Hagedorn while waiting for his flight to Las Vegas.
Hagedorn described Hagler as "impressive and courageous" as he managed to turn the tide and snatched victory from the jaws of defeat by knocking out Hearns in the third round.
"The boxers that impressed me most were Roberto Duran, Tony 'The Tiger' Lopez, Oscar De La Hoya, Julio Caesar Chavez, Jr."
Hagedorn added that he has seen on video the fights of Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney, Joe Louis, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Hector Camacho, Mike Tyson, Trevor Bervick, Evander Holyfield, among other prominent ring warriors.
"Bervick knocked out Muhammad Ali but was also himself knocked out by Mike Tyson," he explained. "Bervick is now dead."
He said he once made a joke to his friends that someday Pacquiao will fight Oscar De La Hoya. He was shocked that Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions began negotiating (at that time of our meeting the Pacquiao-De La Hoya duel was a mere proposal) for the big fight which has been set on December 6 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Hagedorn picked Pacquiao to win over De La Hoya.
"Although there is difference in the size, you can't measure a man's heart," he sighed referring to Pacquiao's "big heart."
"Manny is No. 1 in the sport when it comes to discipline and training. When he trains you can see in his face his determination to win," he concluded. "Man, he is now the number one fighter in the world pound-for-pound."
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Alex P. Vidal.
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